Kolkata: Trinamool councillor and borough chairman of Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) Ranjan Poddar was arrested on Wednesday in connection with alleged extortion activities, marking the latest development in a widening crackdown on alleged rackets involving Trinamool functionaries in Bidhannagar.Poddar, councillor of BMC ward 34, is known to be a close associate of former Bidhannagar MLA Sujit Bose. Bose was recently arrested by the ED in connection with an alleged municipal recruitment scam.According to sources, several hawkers, transporters and local businessmen in Salt Lake lodged complaints accusing Poddar of extortion. Acting on these allegations, police detained him for questioning earlier in the day before formally placing him under arrest.Rana Haldar, said to be an associate of Poddar, was also arrested on Wednesday on similar allegations. Separate extortion complaints further led to the arrest of local Trinamool functionaries Soumik Das alias Raja and Bijoy Rajbanshi over alleged extortion activities.
